Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
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ToddStaples
New member
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
Lol. I don't know it to be true, I just know what I was told. Evan pretty much just confirmed it tho.
Lol. I don't know it to be true, I just know what I was told. Evan pretty much just confirmed it tho.
ToddStaples
New member
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
Maybe. Who knows?
Why would the Fender rep say that if it was Untrue? Proprietary (The PG+) is more protection for Fender than for Duncan.
Maybe. Who knows?
Why would the Fender rep say that if it was Untrue? Proprietary (The PG+) is more protection for Fender than for Duncan.
ToddStaples
New member
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
Ive worked in music stores for 20 plus years and Your statement is true. However, There was NO benefit to telling anyone this. Having a proprietary pickup is much cooler in the marketplace than having a regular ol' 59B.
Ive worked in music stores for 20 plus years and Your statement is true. However, There was NO benefit to telling anyone this. Having a proprietary pickup is much cooler in the marketplace than having a regular ol' 59B.
frankfalbo
In Fluence Y'all
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
Here's the way I see it: Pretty much all P.A.F. style pickups are within "a few hundred turns" of one another. So someone saying "it's basically a 59" could be speaking in generalities. That's fine, but we can start with what we know: The Pearly Gates and 59 are not the same pickup. This has been discussed before, when people have tried placing Alnico II in a 59 neck. I love both of those pickups, the Pearly Gates neck and the 59 neck with Alnico II, but they are not the same. I can't reveal trade secrets of the company but they are not the same. This is also true for the Pearly Gates bridge and the 59 bridge. They are not the same pickups. Even if you increased the winding on the Pearly Gates bridge so that it was exactly the same as a 59B, it would not be the same pickup. There are other differences. So I would assume those differences follow to the Pearly Gates Plus as well.
Are they all similar? Yes, if you take a more distant view.
Here's the way I see it: Pretty much all P.A.F. style pickups are within "a few hundred turns" of one another. So someone saying "it's basically a 59" could be speaking in generalities. That's fine, but we can start with what we know: The Pearly Gates and 59 are not the same pickup. This has been discussed before, when people have tried placing Alnico II in a 59 neck. I love both of those pickups, the Pearly Gates neck and the 59 neck with Alnico II, but they are not the same. I can't reveal trade secrets of the company but they are not the same. This is also true for the Pearly Gates bridge and the 59 bridge. They are not the same pickups. Even if you increased the winding on the Pearly Gates bridge so that it was exactly the same as a 59B, it would not be the same pickup. There are other differences. So I would assume those differences follow to the Pearly Gates Plus as well.
Are they all similar? Yes, if you take a more distant view.
ToddStaples
New member
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
You seem to be speaking in generalities Frank. I never said the 59B and the PG were the same. I said that, according to a Fender Rep at THAT time the PG+ (proprietary to Fender and not available elsewhere in the Duncan Lineup) is a Re-labeled 59B.
Im obviously on the outside here so I wont say any more on this subject....
You seem to be speaking in generalities Frank. I never said the 59B and the PG were the same. I said that, according to a Fender Rep at THAT time the PG+ (proprietary to Fender and not available elsewhere in the Duncan Lineup) is a Re-labeled 59B.
Im obviously on the outside here so I wont say any more on this subject....
Evan Skopp
SDUGF Founder
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
FWIW, the PG+ was designed by Kevin Beller with input from Mike Lewis, who was VP of Marketing at Fender. The '59 never factored into the equation.
FWIW, the PG+ was designed by Kevin Beller with input from Mike Lewis, who was VP of Marketing at Fender. The '59 never factored into the equation.
frankfalbo
In Fluence Y'all
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
Exactly. All I was trying to say about generalities is to point out there's nuance between a Fender rep saying "it's a rebranded 59" vs "it's basically a rebranded 59".
The first statement is false, but the second statement, while still not really true is more palatable because the 59 is arguably the closest production pickup Duncan makes to a PG+. At the end of the day, its not important what anyone says about the pickups themselves, because the pickups don't have feelings. They're not going to change. But a statement like that could be construed as a reflection of character. I (and many others I'm sure) don't like it if a company takes identical products and rebrands one to charge more, unbeknownst to the consumer. It's less sinister if they're rebranding like priducts to hit different market segments but usually the public prefers not to be duped.
Todd don't take it the wrong way I know you're not implying any of this. What I'm saying is more about someone who would have started or perpetuated that rumor (or oversimplification depending on how you look at it) If its really what they thought, then its not their fault I suppose.
Exactly. All I was trying to say about generalities is to point out there's nuance between a Fender rep saying "it's a rebranded 59" vs "it's basically a rebranded 59".
The first statement is false, but the second statement, while still not really true is more palatable because the 59 is arguably the closest production pickup Duncan makes to a PG+. At the end of the day, its not important what anyone says about the pickups themselves, because the pickups don't have feelings. They're not going to change. But a statement like that could be construed as a reflection of character. I (and many others I'm sure) don't like it if a company takes identical products and rebrands one to charge more, unbeknownst to the consumer. It's less sinister if they're rebranding like priducts to hit different market segments but usually the public prefers not to be duped.
Todd don't take it the wrong way I know you're not implying any of this. What I'm saying is more about someone who would have started or perpetuated that rumor (or oversimplification depending on how you look at it) If its really what they thought, then its not their fault I suppose.
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
I have had both pickups in strats. I liked the PG+ much better. It was a hotter pickup with an A5 mag. It added low end and the gain on the top notes seemed more pronounced. It also seemed to cut through a mix better then the PG with the A2 mag. It isn't as sweet sounding practicing at bedroom levels but it has a good cut in a band mix and it splits well with other pickups. Mine came in the Fender Big Apple Strat. It really sounded good in that guitar. That guitar has two humbuckers. You need something with a little hotter pickup in the bridge to balance out the string magnetic pull of the neck humbucker. I sank the neck humbucker down as far as I could and adjusted the pole pieces under the high strings to still get a nice high tone and set the PG+ in the bridge a little higher to get more sustain out of it but not too high as I didnt want it to effect the strings sustain ether.
I have had both pickups in strats. I liked the PG+ much better. It was a hotter pickup with an A5 mag. It added low end and the gain on the top notes seemed more pronounced. It also seemed to cut through a mix better then the PG with the A2 mag. It isn't as sweet sounding practicing at bedroom levels but it has a good cut in a band mix and it splits well with other pickups. Mine came in the Fender Big Apple Strat. It really sounded good in that guitar. That guitar has two humbuckers. You need something with a little hotter pickup in the bridge to balance out the string magnetic pull of the neck humbucker. I sank the neck humbucker down as far as I could and adjusted the pole pieces under the high strings to still get a nice high tone and set the PG+ in the bridge a little higher to get more sustain out of it but not too high as I didnt want it to effect the strings sustain ether.
Robert Delahunt
Showmasterologist
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
The PG+ is hotter. See Seymour Duncan Support > FAQ > Frequently Asked Questions > Everything Else > What’s the difference between your Pearly Gates pickup and the Pearly Gates Plus found on some Fender® guitars? for more info.
I've owned two now. It's hotter than a '59 bridge, and hotter than a Pearly Gates bridge, and comes only in trembucker spacing (since Fender used it only on their guitars and all their guitars it came in had tremolo tails). I just sold my last one to someone on this forum. I didn't hate it, it sounded great, as everyone else has described, but I greatly prefer having a more medium output humbucker in the bridge (to my ears, compared to the Full Shred and JB, the PG+ is NOT medium output, or high output: it's vintage output).
A good place to find PG+ pickups is in Fender Showmasters with a bridge humbucker. In my honest opinion, this is a horrible pickup for a basswood body guitar such as a Showmaster. The Full Shred trembucker bridge is not only smarter but fits better for what the Showmaster (set neck with 15.75" radius, 24 frets, sculpted basswood body) seems to be designed for, and to my ears sounds better in the Showmaster. But in other guitars, sure, if you basically want an overwound '59 bridge in trembucker spacing, this is your pickup. Just my 2 cents.
The PG+ is hotter. See Seymour Duncan Support > FAQ > Frequently Asked Questions > Everything Else > What’s the difference between your Pearly Gates pickup and the Pearly Gates Plus found on some Fender® guitars? for more info.
I've owned two now. It's hotter than a '59 bridge, and hotter than a Pearly Gates bridge, and comes only in trembucker spacing (since Fender used it only on their guitars and all their guitars it came in had tremolo tails). I just sold my last one to someone on this forum. I didn't hate it, it sounded great, as everyone else has described, but I greatly prefer having a more medium output humbucker in the bridge (to my ears, compared to the Full Shred and JB, the PG+ is NOT medium output, or high output: it's vintage output).
A good place to find PG+ pickups is in Fender Showmasters with a bridge humbucker. In my honest opinion, this is a horrible pickup for a basswood body guitar such as a Showmaster. The Full Shred trembucker bridge is not only smarter but fits better for what the Showmaster (set neck with 15.75" radius, 24 frets, sculpted basswood body) seems to be designed for, and to my ears sounds better in the Showmaster. But in other guitars, sure, if you basically want an overwound '59 bridge in trembucker spacing, this is your pickup. Just my 2 cents.
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
I too thought the PG+ was wider spaced ("trembucker" spaced), since it is made for Fender and goes in Fender guitars with the wider string spacing, but a previous post in this thread said the spacing from the middle of the poles is around 49mm, which means it is vintage spaced, not F-spaced (or trembucker spaced, or whatever you want to call it). A wider-spaced polepiece pickup usually is around 51mm or so. It would make sense for Fender to have it F-spaced, as it is only made as a bridge pickup in Fender guitars, but it seems that is not so.
Al
I too thought the PG+ was wider spaced ("trembucker" spaced), since it is made for Fender and goes in Fender guitars with the wider string spacing, but a previous post in this thread said the spacing from the middle of the poles is around 49mm, which means it is vintage spaced, not F-spaced (or trembucker spaced, or whatever you want to call it). A wider-spaced polepiece pickup usually is around 51mm or so. It would make sense for Fender to have it F-spaced, as it is only made as a bridge pickup in Fender guitars, but it seems that is not so.
Al
Chris of Arabia
Desert RATT
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
You can rest assured it's standard (vintage) spaced.
You can rest assured it's standard (vintage) spaced.
Robert Delahunt
Showmasterologist
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
I find that strange because the PG+ had the pole pieces perfectly under the strings, as does my TB-10 now in that same guitar. So maybe there are PG+ that are trem-spaced?
I find that strange because the PG+ had the pole pieces perfectly under the strings, as does my TB-10 now in that same guitar. So maybe there are PG+ that are trem-spaced?
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
I'm not sure what guitar you have the pickup in, but if it is a Mexican-made Standard Strat or another non-U.S.-made Strat, many of them have trems that have narrower 2 1/16" string spacing (pretty much like a Gibson), so a regular-spaced HB would fit right under the strings on those. If it's a U.S.-made guitar, I don't know how to explain it. Fender only sells one model of the PG+, and it's a bridge model.
Al
I'm not sure what guitar you have the pickup in, but if it is a Mexican-made Standard Strat or another non-U.S.-made Strat, many of them have trems that have narrower 2 1/16" string spacing (pretty much like a Gibson), so a regular-spaced HB would fit right under the strings on those. If it's a U.S.-made guitar, I don't know how to explain it. Fender only sells one model of the PG+, and it's a bridge model.
Al
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
There is a staggering, amount of misinformation here....
The PG+ is absolutely NOT F-spaced. It is G-spaced. I've owned 2 of them, and neither of them were F-spaced.
And yes, the PG+ with an A5 is hotter than a regular A2 PG, but if you put an A2 mag in a PG+ the difference is hardly noticeable..... Just the slightest bump in output with no less sparkle.
The A5 PG+ In a les paul wooded guitar has a little too much upper midrange for my taste.... but it's perfect with an A2 or A4, and it would be perfect in a strat if it were actually F-spaced.... since it was ONLY available in a strat in the first place..... In reality, an F-spaced PGb with an A5 swap would be better in a strat than the PG+ is. I know some people swear tone isnt affected by using G-spaced pickups in F-spaced guitars, but it absolutely is. The difference is less noticeable the farther the pickup is from the strings, but i usually adjust them close enough to where it makes a big difference.
Here's my PG+ with an A2. (first part of the video) I didn't A/B anything, but you get the idea. (which is in the for sale section BTW) i used it for quite a while, because it's one of my favorite bridge pickups of all time. i'm selling it, because i'm moving toward more of a true PAF sound in this guitar.
There is a staggering, amount of misinformation here....
The PG+ is absolutely NOT F-spaced. It is G-spaced. I've owned 2 of them, and neither of them were F-spaced.
And yes, the PG+ with an A5 is hotter than a regular A2 PG, but if you put an A2 mag in a PG+ the difference is hardly noticeable..... Just the slightest bump in output with no less sparkle.
The A5 PG+ In a les paul wooded guitar has a little too much upper midrange for my taste.... but it's perfect with an A2 or A4, and it would be perfect in a strat if it were actually F-spaced.... since it was ONLY available in a strat in the first place..... In reality, an F-spaced PGb with an A5 swap would be better in a strat than the PG+ is. I know some people swear tone isnt affected by using G-spaced pickups in F-spaced guitars, but it absolutely is. The difference is less noticeable the farther the pickup is from the strings, but i usually adjust them close enough to where it makes a big difference.
Here's my PG+ with an A2. (first part of the video) I didn't A/B anything, but you get the idea. (which is in the for sale section BTW) i used it for quite a while, because it's one of my favorite bridge pickups of all time. i'm selling it, because i'm moving toward more of a true PAF sound in this guitar.
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Robert Delahunt
Showmasterologist
Re: Specs on Pearly Gates and PG+
Ok well my PG+s were both in a MIK Fender Showmaster. I recently put a TB-10 in my Showmaster and it fit perfectly, at least to my ears. I will take a close up picture to prove it, but in my mind, if B=C and A=C then A=B.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
Ok well my PG+s were both in a MIK Fender Showmaster. I recently put a TB-10 in my Showmaster and it fit perfectly, at least to my ears. I will take a close up picture to prove it, but in my mind, if B=C and A=C then A=B.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
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